If Pakistan had never been...

Some thought provoking arguments come to mind when I see the state of our beloved country today and it all lands on; what if Pakistan had never come into being?

All the Indo-Pak history tells us that those were difficult times and that there was a need for a separate nation for the Muslims of the subcontinent. I however wonder - was there really? I mean look at India today, they are well established, higher literacy rate, successful, patriotic and there are Indian Muslims in high ranking positions not just in the private or entertainment sector but in the government and legislature today.
Of course this argument is now a moot point because Pakistan does exist and is sadly being run down into the ground by its own people.

Taking a look at our political and economical history I would say Pakistan started off really well. Pakistanis had a dream and everyone pitched in and did their part to get the country up and running. May it have been the militant rule or a democratic government, Pakistan was a production of its people. And today the people can make a difference again.

I think about how I can contribute in little ways and here are some things that come to mind;

• Promote Pakistani products

This is easy. Here I start with myself. No matter all the Maybaline(s), Clinique(s) and Mac(s) of the world, when it comes to my eyes, I trust only the "Hashmi Surma". I buy it and I know the majority of our female population buys it. When it comes to fizzy drinks, my preference is always "Pakola". If it comes to juices, why go for Nestle when Engro Food's "Olfrute" is just as awesome? Small things we can make a difference with, buy local products to improve the economy.

• Market our local industries internationally

Pakistan being an agricultural country has an amazing opportunity in the textile sector. Why don't we market our Gul Ahmed, Al-Karam and likes of it internationally? If we can have international designer outlets here in Pakistan, why can't our local brands have outlets abroad? Same goes for our crafts. We sell our own local crafts such as khusas, hand embroidered materials in various forms, ajraks and other cultural delicacies so expensive here, why can't we have a streamlined export of our cultural products worldwide?

• Market local talent internationally

Now Coke Studio has really taken our musical artists forward and it is great to have a world renowned top brand such as Coke back up our artists. However, our media (radio and music channels) can play a big role here by not only airing known artists but maybe taking one step forward and playing our national songs on a regular basis instead of just on 14th August. Our artists can do covers of these songs! So much can be done in this department...!
Same goes for our designers and designer brands. The leading names in our industry such as HSY, Rizwan Beg, Sana Safinas, Deepak Perwani, Amir Adnan, Nilofer Shahid, Bunto... and the list goes on... Instead of buying Armani or Gucci, spend the same amount buying from them! Gulabo, our very own truck art - then why bring back tuk tuk models from Thailand?


One can go on and on with ideas but the first and foremost idea is to take ownership. It is our country people - lets take it back! For whatever reason the partition happened, now it is done, lets make the best of it. Lets not get disheartened which leads our next generations to completely lose faith in our country. Sportsmen, politicians, actors and the likes come and go. Lets not let their mistakes become our identity. Lets not only come together during catastrophes like earthquakes and floods, lets be a nation all the time.  Lets be hopeful again... its a good feeling... :)

Pakistani Media - Friend or Foe?

The Pakistani media on many occasions has proved to be rather irresponsible and insensitive. Take the recent floods or the earlier Air Blue crash this year. The media was unstoppable! While one showed a cartoon plane crashing over and over again, others gave out misinformation about survivors etc. And now the constant flood footage! Whereas the awareness is good, I believe there is more to journalism than criticizing the government. There is a human element there, its people's lives and livelihoods, these are real time stories - but hardly anyone has captured anything factual and human apart from the obvious.

The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) was established by Musharraf in 2002 to facilitate and regulate the establishment and operation of all private broadcast media and distribution services in Pakistan; in turn giving freedom of speech to the local media. Today, the same media which had literally limited or no rights whatsoever doesn't hesitate to criticize the man who provided this platform. 

How can we have forgotten the time of our former leaders when the media was allowed to provide nothing more than the essential news? How about the reign of Zia which made it mandatory for all women to have their heads covered whilst appearing on television? (An era more popularly know as the "Dupatta Culture") A romance scene in the dramas seemed like siblings conversing. Bhutto made it impossible for newspapers to print the truth by countering their every move. Junoon (Pakistani band) was banned from performing within their homeland during Nawaz Sharif's tenure for singing Iqbal's poetry in a new way to have more outreach, whereas in fact, the ban was an indirect caution to their single "Ehtesaab".

Then the media was given the chance to rise and today Pakistan hosts more electronic mediums than most developed nations. The media influences people, has the right to say or do whatever and clearly has no sense of regard for responsible journalism. I've noticed people are scared of the media. This is not how it should be, the media needs to be your source of information. There needs to be more to news than just yellow journalism which is a result of unprofessional media personnel being inducted into the work sphere of media outlets. Reporters are people who have had no formal educational training in the field, they don't know the right questions to ask or the right stories to investigate. This leaves our media a joke for the rest of the world and in turn an unreliable source. Channels get banned due to their tactless means and come back on air leaving no respect for authority which results in making Pakistan itself look foolish.

Our literary media, i.e; the writers, are a limited resource. Our film industry, once the classic silvers screen is now stuck in the same "Gandasa Culture" imposed in the 80's.

At the same time, we are all easily influenced by the media as well because it is a source of knowledge as well as entertainment and is easily intertwined in our daily lives. If anything, the media can bring forward a positive image of Pakistan and having spoken to various journalists on occasions, I know that they want to. But somehow it is not visible. 

What we don't realize is that news is not the only form of media., media itself is communication. Written records such as books are the purest form of media. Then evolving, newspapers, magazines, radio, television, film and now the internet - all media. Communication is a powerful platform which can make or break anything. The media industry itself is supported by advertisements, again, a form of media, i.e; influencing. It all falls into a cycle. One can't exist without the other. Then how is it so difficult to utilize these resources humbly, with caution? With all the pros and cons of the media industry, is there really a balance within our local media? Are we heading towards trouble, or is this the way Pakistan will move forward? Does conventional media still count as important or will new media take over and every layman will be a journalist in his or her own right? The question remains - our media, friend or foe?

Floods, PK 2010

JazakAllah! The people of Pakistan have once again come together to help their nation. I have been overwhelmed by the effort each and every individual has been making, especially after my worries regarding our Pakistaniat.
First and foremost - I applaud you all!
The Pakistani business community has been making tremendous efforts and thankfully everyone is donating to NGOs and responsible authorities, even setting up camp themselves and not relying on the government. Smart move people!
What I believe is important at this moment in time is the complete understanding of the picture before us, the casualties have taken place but there will be a lot more if a proper procedure is not followed. The affected areas are not only in monetary distress but in actual mortal peril. The disaster is massive and the repercussions are yet to be seen. 
From my observation through various mediums, there are thousands of people camped in one area with unthinkable sanitary conditions. This is just going to increase the intensity of diseases to come. *Safai Nisf Eman Hai* one of the basics of our religion, Lets concentrate on cleaning up the mess and cleaning after ourselves. The displaced may be in a state most of us can not understand but educating them about hygiene is important. I do believe the media has the power to impose the severity of this and corporations must speak out about it at various forums as well, as they are currently being approached by the media to speak about their relief efforts.
Just as water, food, medicines, clothes, tents and other daily use items are necessary for the affectees, proper sanitary equipment is also just as important to decrease the risk factor. It is important to have adequate cleaning facilities like washrooms and toilets, antibacterial soaps, toilet cleaners and a proper monitoring of these aids.
Preventive measures are always the way to go about things. Due to climate change and global warming we can expect many a floods in the coming years, lets stop procrastinating and work towards building smaller dams and reservoirs. The government has proven time and again that they will be useless throughout their tenures - lets work on it privately. I have seen various professionals talking about this very same thing on television and corporate social responsibility is a major part of any organization. This is a CSR project just waiting to be taken up. The people are willing to invest for the betterment of the country as is obvious, with complete transparency there is no reason why anyone will hesitate to fund these projects. It would be a very wise move on the part of the government to work clean and clear through this crisis and rebuild the faith but lets face it - that is just wishful thinking.
I know that as an average patriotic citizen, I myself will be honoured to help Pakistan in any way I can. I believe this catastrophe can be the right time to focus on being a Pakistani and making a better Pakistan. Each individual effort towards one goal is what makes unity - I urge us forward through this difficult time to come out in a better Pakistan tomorrow. Ameen.

Are we Pakistani only *once* a year?!

I was entering my apartment compound a few days ago when there was a water tanker in front of me and so the procession was slow - a car behind me kept honking throughout and when finally the driver overtook me and parked in front of B block a very hoity toity young girl came out of the back seat. I excused and requested that she ask her driver not to honk at residents within the compound premises and she turns around and says to me with a very strong fake accent, "Why? Everyone else does it." So I still said, "Yes but if everyone is wrong we don't have to be." and she says, "Why?"
To this day I am in shock about these educated fools who call themselves so civilized and elite. I do believe they are the real terrorists destroying Pakistan.
I write here complaining because the very same girl came to my building and asked for money to host a bar-b-q on 14th August yesterday! I was appalled at the short sightedness of people. The United Nations is giving out statements saying, these floods are worse than the earthquake of 2005 and the tsunami put together and the woman wanted to collect money for a bbq!
I ask - what is the point of celebrating an independence day when we are slaves to our own moronic-ness? All year round Pakistan is the worst country to live in and the people here are the worst - but on 14th August everyone is a patriot. As much as I appreciate that sentiment and the thought that there is still something holding this country together, I am very sad to say that it is not the lower class of this country which makes it backward - it is people like us who don't even have our priorities straight. We are living in limbo in a world only made for us, pointing fingers at each other and not realizing where we might be wrong. There is no sense of loyalty or humbleness left in us. We are selfish cowardly people, living life as if we will live forever.
Wearing our national dress or colours is not going to make us better Pakistanis, nor will it be anything more than yet another excuse to party.
I remember my childhood years in school, I think every boy in our class wanted to be a part of our armed forces. They wanted to make a difference. Today I don't see any of them serving the nation but at least they had shown an interest. I asked my 12 year old nephew the other day how is new school is treating him and his answer was great! glad I left the other school because this girl obsessed with me was spreading rumors about us. I was shocked. What has happened to our youth? Why are the kids growing up so quickly in all the wrong departments? Where has the innocence gone?
Are we really just Pakistani once a year? Where does our patriotism go all year round? Where are the national songs and colours throughout the year? Because I honestly remember a friend describing someone wearing a really cheap green jora at a mehndi - which describing she said, "yaar that ganda Pakistan green!" Yes I am associated with such people and probably am one of these people. But I want to speak out and say that yes I have been wrong and I don't want to be Pakistani only on 14th August. I want to be a good citizen all year round. I want to be considerate and law abiding and yes it is hard when people around me are not on the same page - but I do believe it is worth the effort. Each individual in his or her own right can help build a better Pakistan. Our youth can still be trained to care and not grow up heartless and cold. Lets work towards making ourselves better people. Lets work on us before anything else.

Who says our President is not concerned about people impacted due to recent floods!!!

Carrie's lost her charm - Sex and the City 2

Betsy Sharkey of the Los Angeles Times sums it up the best, "If only they'd called it "Almost No Sex and Very Little City," at least we would know what we were in for with " Sex and the City 2."

The movie starts off with a lavish gay wedding which may as well be the ONLY true part of the actual Sex and the City charisma. The movie as I perceive, killed Carrie's character and leaves something a bit incomplete about the real time drama.
Having relocated the set to the Middle East was not a very brilliant idea; firstly, it didn't keep in accordance with the theme of show - sex. Secondly, the point was to establish a healthy marriage between Carrie and Big with all the unorthodox ways and means they choose. This point could have just as easily been stated right there in New York - a city full of foreign working class in every nook and corner who are away from their wives trying to make a living.
Having said that, on the whole the movie was a sour disappointment except for the one highlight, the establishment of the fact that Dubai indeed is over and that Abu Dhabi is in fact the gateway to UAE.
Keeping in loyalty to my absolute guide throughout life, the show itself, I feel compelled to say something good about it - the clothes and accessories!
Still stunning and amazingly breathtaking... those women might have lost their way in the movie world but they will forever remain the fashion gurus of our time.

MQM shuts down Karachi once again...

If you live in Karachi, MQM is like a part of your everyday existence - they are happy, you are happy. In the recent episode of the murder of one of their people, Raza Haider, Karachi once again came to a halt.
I left for work early morning and found my way empty, which to a Karachi driver is the equivalent of a rainbow (almost never seen in Karachi). But of course I got happy too fast and ended up a couple of feet away from a torching and stoning session in full swing. I turned back and headed home - that was that... it was a holiday!
The feeling was of when I was a kid and would get to school early morning sometimes to find out something or the other has come up and the school is off. This was a very rare occurrence in Islamabad, my home town, but it did happen. But my unexpected holiday was nothing how I would've hoped it would be.
All of Karachi was shut down, so much so that I think even the roadside phoolwalas and magazine walas didn't come into work; hardly any beggars either. I made my way back home in yet again complete emptiness and a fear gripped the air.
As I watched the news channels one after the other I realized Karachi was a war zone and our government a perpetual joke. The death toll kept rising and one by one everyone I know who had been able to get to work in the morning started heading home. The fear of more violence drove everyone indoors.
On the third day, today, Karachi is still suspended in this situation of complete mayhem, with nearly 70 people dead and another 200 injured. As the murders, torching of vehicles, shops and pushcarts continue, the citizens have been left to fend for themselves. The government remains uncertain and has played no part in establishing routine in the city. Are our authorities always going to stay so defenseless? Will we never know a peaceful life? It seems to me that the government considers the protection of the lives and property of the people secondary to maintaining their own status by issuing statement after statement. Instead of discouraging our morally and professionally incompetent media from creating unnecessary hype - they insist on giving meaningless statements every other hour.
We really need some new blood in our leaders, a new dawn needs to break soon... Our choices are failing and it is about time for a change. I propose if people are to die - it may as well be a revolution! Maybe something better will come off of it....

Prem Chand, aged 26, died in the Airblue crash. His coffin was marked "Kaafir".

What complete insensitivity! I was appalled when I read about this.
My question basically is that who are we to identify anyone as a momin (believer) or a kaafir (non-believer)? Isn't that between the man (woman) and God? I know this is a question that has gone in circles since the beginning of time, but I wish to ask once again, who is a kaafir?
From what I have read and researched - a kaafir  is someone who believes in a greater power than God or shares the glory of God with another power human or else. I believe nobody can know about another's belief except oneself. It is a very subjective and private matter which is unlikely to come out in any discussion or action for that matter. I certainly don't mean to deny the teachings of Quran and Sunnah (God forbid) but I do believe it is insensitive to classify like this when most among us who call ourselves Muslims don't follow the religion properly. It is a matter for Allah to resolve with his people.
In a discussion with some colleagues, it was pointed out to me that the Quran states; "O you who believe! do not take the Jews and the Christians for friends; they are friends of each other; and whoever amongst you takes them for a friend, then surely he is one of them; surely Allah does not guide the unjust people."
To which my rebuttal still stands, just because someone is not your friend or and enemy even - you must not defame him/her. People may be good, bad or evil, they still came to this Earth with Allah's will and where it may be important to explain that yes Islam is the correct religion, another's disagreement does not give anyone the right to call the other person names. And just because someone has a different name does not mean that he had not at some point converted to Islam.
So many angles can be touched upon for this topic but I am not here to battle all sides of the story. Just here to say one thing:
Name calling is wrong people - that's the bottom line.

Beware the Dementors...

In my Daily Times days I did a story on the nation's morale being low due to Dementor attacks via the famous Harry Potter series.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007\11\07\story_7-11-2007_pg12_1

Since yesterday i've been thinking maybe it really is true that these creatures of depression and gloom exist.

A plane crashed with people we knew or knew of or someone we knew knew. Today we are already forgetting about those people due to the many hardships facing everyone today. Nobody is happy. Everyone has a gazillion worries and nothing seems happy anymore. The happiest of occasions, births, weddings, graduations everything seems meaningless. You look at people's facebook updates and the entire news feed is full of disheartened and complaining people.

What is wrong? What is happening to the world? Or is it really the dementors afterall?!